Springfield daily republic. [volume] (Springfield, O. [Ohio]) 1887-1888, 1887-10-29

A CASE OF JAPANESE ,CROS
States have 10 right to receive gifts from
foreign potentates, and such gifts are turned
over 10 the museum. There is feather cloak
at the entrance which was made for one Of
the old kings Of the Sandwich Islands and
which consumed nearly a century in its con-
struction. It is as big as a good sized dolman
and is made mp of countless red and yellow
feathers Of quality so difficnlt to procure
that three Of the feathers cost dollar.
Just opposite this cloak the Grant relics
shine out Of their CASES in all their beauty.
and within arms length Of this royal cloak
hangs the uniform which the great general
wore when be was commanding tbs armies
Of the United States. and yard or - on the
other side are the fur clothes Of an Esqui-
man Speaking Of the Grant relics, the col
lection cf historical matter belonging to the
museum constantly increases. and II has
MANY a choice reniniscence and rare curiO
Goi,elin tapestries hang upon its walls. and
it has the mosaic lion which was exhibited at
the centennial This lion stood in the court
OF Tunis 1t was sold to the English consul
General there by some iconoclastic Arnbians.
ana was given to the museum by this consul
general. This lion was originally stolen
from DE temple Of Astarte in Carthage. It
was made about the time Christ was born,
and II is prsbsbly the oldest mosaic in this
country.
There is an old tomb here Of marble, .
saroophagus which probably once held the
bones of some Roman nObleman, and the col
lection Of relics Of WashingtOn's day is full
cS interest. More can be learned Of WASH
fne.on from the study of the articles in the
snaseum than from those Of Mount Vernon,
and a look at his rare old china and fine
furniture shows that he loved the beautiful
and the fauciful. and his dress proclaims him
his wine from the finest Of cut glass. He ate
his soup from tho blue china which ts 50
hard TO get now. and when he rested bis
shapciy limbs he dropped them down into
cushioned mahogany.
The ori. ,inal Declaration Of Independence
Is also here and there arc q number Of old
Spanish documents dating back 400 years
and more, One curious autograph letter 10
that Of Robert Fulton speaking OF his patent,
and there is letter from John Randolph, Of
Roanoke, to Madison Hero are autograph
Letters of nearly all the presidents and there
is an autograph copy Of Longfellow's SEX
celsior.r
AnOl0ef CuIlCSlty - . Cuso NSAS
Of hair of all the presidents, and from it you
NAV see that the color of boys head is no
sign as to whether he will be president or
not. jefferson had rel hair and his portraits
represent him as banging it down over his
forehead Garf.elds hair was almost that Of
n fsVE head, and the hair preserved Of George
Washington is iron gray. President Arthur
mad dark hair, and Abraham Lincoln's hair
wn DARK brown
The National museum has here one Of the
frst locomotives in this country, and think
n has tte ene upon which Peter CocT e
acted as engineer. Here Is the original
Morse telegraph instrument, and II was on
this instrument that the ffrn telegraphic
message in the world was sent This line
ran from Washington 30 Baltimore and the
first words were: What hath God wrought! r
Shortly after the line was completed there
was political convention held at Baltimore
which nominated q president and vice presi-
dent The vice presidential candidate was
at Washington and he wac Silas Wrigt ,
then United States senator He telegraphsd
q declination of the nomination, but the con.
vention would not trust the telegraph on
such an important matter and they came BY
cars to Washington to persuade him to &C
.cept the second place on the ticket with Polk
He refused, however, and Dallas was nomi-
0ated